The internet, a cornucopia of informational videos, alternative news sources, and real-time footage of fantastic encounters too outrageous to believe. Or are they? Three friends for the video channel Skeptic Soup are out to debunk sensational claims, but when a first-hand account involving a missing boy takes them to the wilds of Canada, what they find may not align with their personal beliefs. Will they survive their foray into the field? Or worse, will they have to eat their words?
Pocono Liar founder Michael A. Ventrella‘s latest book is a novella featuring lots of humor, scary parts, and the plot twists he loves to incorporate into all his works. It’s available wherever you can find good books, and even in places where you can find bad books.
Editor Neil Clarke (winner of numerous Hugo Awards and editor of the yearly “Best of Science Fiction” anthologies) explains why you should not use artificial intelligence to write your story.
October 26, 2024 at the Hughes Library. Admission is FREE but you must reserve your spot because of limited space. Here’s the link to sign up!
In this day-long event, small, interactive group workshops will be offered, providing participants with information and personal attention. Attendees will be able to choose three workshops from the six offered. [See Below]
Remember: This is a workshop. Bring your laptop or pen and paper and be ready to do some writing exercises!
WORKSHOPS
A1: Plotting Your Story
There are two kinds of stories: ones where things happen, and ones that have a plot. You want yours to be the second kind. Join Kelly Jensen in Plotting 101, a workshop designed to take your ideas and turn them into a plot that will make your characters and readers happy.
Pocono Liar Author and Presenter Kelly Jensen is the author of fifteen novels and over a dozen novellas and short stories. Some of what she writes is speculative in nature, but mostly it’s about a guy losing his socks or burning dinner. Because life isn’t all conquering aliens and mountain peaks. Sometimes finding a happy ever after is all the adventure we need. Connect with Kelly: Website: https://www.kellyjensenwrites.com
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A2: Adding Tension into Dialogue
Who wants to read, no less write, flat dialogue? It’s boring. It takes up space and keeps a story from moving along. But how to spice it up? Join Sahar Abdulaziz in Adding Tension into Dialogue, a workshop designed to make character interactions jump off the page into your readers’ hearts.
Presenter and Pocono Liar Author Sahar Abdulaziz specializes in writing psychological thrillers, suspenseful narratives, thought-provoking social commentary, and clever satire. However, there’s nothing that Sahar enjoys more than exercising her demonic proclivity for crafting intricate, multifaceted protagonists confronting formidable challenges. The more dysfunctional, the better. https://www.saharraziz.com
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B1: Honing your story
Getting an editor to buy your short story is not an easy task. This workshop will help you hone your plot to its necessary parts and will help you narrow down your idea to be as original and unique as possible.
M ichael A. Ventrella writes witty adventures about reluctant heroes. He’s edited over a dozen anthologies featuring award-winning NY Times bestselling authors. His own short stories have appeared in various anthologies and magazines, and he’s also written nonfiction books about music and the U.S. Constitution. His web page is www.michaelaventrella.com
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B2: Backstory
Why is backstory important to your plot? Do you want to deepen your stories? Find the “why” behind your character’s actions? Join Victoria Marie Lees to learn how to add interiority to your story.
Pocono Liar Author Victoria Marie Lees has published a variety of literary works, including short stories, fiction, essays, memoirs, and poetry. For more information: https://www.victoriamarielees.com
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C1: The Magic of the Short Story
Unlock the magic of short stories. Enter the realms of sci-fi and fantasy to wrestle with world-building, character creation, and concise plots in a word-limited manner. Hands-on writing challenges and engaging discussions will offer a chance to practice and implement ideas. Kevin T. Morley’s workshop is your gateway to crafting unforgettable short stories.
KT Morley spent twenty years teaching America’s youth about Algebra and the plight of a hopelessly lost X. Then he began writing SF and F to share with his bride and their children. He’s published several short stories, the most recent with Konsensus’ print 21 Futures, Tales from the Timechain. Find him at https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKTMorley. (where he has readings titled Storytime with an Algebra Teacher)
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C2: Crafting the Elevator Pitch
It took you two years to write your book. You find yourself in front of an editor who’s about to disappear. How do you sell that book in ten seconds? Well, you don’t. But you can grab the editor’s interest enough to get more time for a longer pitch, and that’s your goal.
Ian Randal Strockis the owner and publisher of Gray Rabbit Publications / Fantastic Books. He previously worked for Baen Books, freelance edited manuscripts that were later published by Alyson, Doubleday, and Padwolf, and has extensive magazine publishing and editing experience (including stints at Artemis, Analog, Asimov’s, Absolute Magnitude, Science Fiction Chronicle, KISS, The Daily Free Press, and more). As a writer, his books have been published by Random House and Carrel Books, while his short fiction has appeared in Analog and Nature. Full details on Ian can be found onwww.IanRandalStrock.com.
SCHEDULE
9:00: Registration, Meet & Greet, Introductions
9:30: Workshop: A1 (Plotting Your Story) OR A2 (Adding Tension to Dialog)
10:30: Break
10:45: Workshop B1 (Honing Your Story) OR B2 (Backstory)
11:45: Lunch [Please bring a bag lunch and drink; there is a grocery store next door, a coffee shop with snacks in the library, and other fast food places nearby]
12:45: Workshop C1 (The Magic of the Short Story) OR C2 (The Elevator Pitch)
1:45: Break
2:00: Question & Answer Panel
3:00 (or earlier depending on the Q&A panel): Closing remarks/cleanup
NOTE: When you sign up, be careful not to reserve two panels at the same time. Choose A1 or A2, B1 or B2, and C1 or C2.
Since we have limited space, PLEASE do not reserve a spot unless you are absolutely planning on attending.
After being caught stealing from the King, hapless Goodwin’s world is turned upside down when he is told of his true destiny. Goodwin is the prophesized hero who will rid the world of Anudala, an evil wizard corrupting the land.
Thrust into battle, Goodwin discovers his power, but his eyes are opened to the ways of the world. His enemy Anudala claims to be leading a revolution against the King and Goodwin finds it difficult to argue with her message. However, with the Lady Damast, his gruff mentor, whispering in his ear, he doesn’t know who to trust.
As they travel across the land to find Anudala, Goodwin faces new foes and loses friends along the way. Struggling to figure out the truth, Goodwin wonders who is the true enemy?
With his biggest battle yet on the horizon, Goodwin must choose a side, knowing it will change his life forever.
“A fun and often humorous adventure with a likeable hero. Moral dilemmas, twists and turns, and a fast, exciting read!” — Michael A. Ventrella, Author of “Big Stick” and “Terin Ostler and the Axes of Evil”
“A wild romp in the best traditions of fantasy fiction. Action, adventure, and plenty of exciting surprises – I’ve read it twice before it was even published! Derek is a welcome new voice in fantasy fiction, and I genuinely look forward to seeing more of his output in the future.” — Randal Graham, Author of the “Beforelife” Trilogy
Cincinnati, November 1968 A natural death…or something else?
After a performance of Mendelssohn’s Elijah, voice teacher and former opera singer Augusta McKee and her husband, Chief Detective Malcolm Mitchell, make a harrowing discovery: multi-millionaire/philanthropist Tobias Dietrich has died unexpectedly in his private box at Cincinnati’s Music Hall. Although all indications seem to point to natural causes, not everyone is convinced. The conditions of Tobias’s death require an investigation by CPD detectives, including Malcolm, to determine if there was foul play.
Augusta and Tobias had been friends for many years, and startling discoveries from his past cause her to view the circumstances of his death differently from the professionals assigned to the case. She is on a mission to uncover the truth, but the deeper Augusta digs, the more complicated the situation becomes. Now she finds herself at a crossroads, facing one of her life’s toughest, most heart-wrenching decisions.
Please share this link with all your writer friends!
SCHEDULE
9:00: MICHAEL A. VENTRELLA: Registration, check-in, and Introductions (The library has a coffee shop where you can get freshly-brewed java and snacks!)
9:15: RANDEE DAWN: “Meet and Greet 101: How to Promote Yourself and Your Work”: You’ve finished your art and want to share it with the world! Congratulations – now comes the next hard part: How? Randee Dawn is a veteran journalist and author with books, short stories and hundreds of interviews under her belt, and she’s here to help you figure how to get everybody on the side of your project! We’ll discuss how to create your image online and how to work with fans and the curious in public at appearances, plus how to make the most of an interview if the press comes calling. You’ll walk away with some key tips to promote without being annoying, and get the most out of every interaction you have to get the word out.
10:30: LESLYE PENELOPE: “World-Building for any Genre”: Creating unique, fully realized environments that readers will want to get lost in is not just a skill for fantasy or science fiction writers. No matter what time period or location your stories are set in, mastering fictional worldbuilding is key to transporting readers into your story. In this workshop you’ll learn techniques and strategies to engage your audience and bring your fictional world to life.
11:30: Lunch (not provided, but there are lots of places nearby or you can bring your own)
12:30: JOSHUA PALMATIER:“Zombies Need Brains!”: Submitting a story to a magazine or anthology isn’t easy. Joshua Palmatier will provide some insights/advice on how to increase your chances of submitting a story and having it accepted, not just at his own publishing house Zombies Need Brains, but at any open call for a magazine or anthology.
1:45: LORI PERKINS:“Do You Need an Agent in Today’s Publishing Marketplace?”: Getting an agent has changed so radically in publishing that authors really need to examine why they need an agent and what an agent can do for them. Lori will discuss her 35 years of experience as an agent to discuss what you can and cannot do or expect.
3:00: MICHAEL A. VENTRELLA: Panel Discussion and Question and Answer session with all panelists
Admission is free but seating is limited. Please only sign up if you are sure you will be attending. If you later discover you cannot attend, please delete your reservation so there will be enough room for everyone. Do not reserve space for anyone other than yourself — if there is more than one reservation under your name, the extra ones will be deleted.
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WORKSHOPS
Each of the participants are holding smaller sessions during the presentations where you can get individual critiques and comments.
These sessions are $20 each. You can sign up for as many as you want but you must pre-register because space is limited. Please note that by signing up for these personal sessions, you will miss some of the other presentations.
The panelists will contact you by email prior to the session to discuss writing samples and other requirements.
Note that the deadline for signing up for these sessions is APRIL 1 (no fooling).
9:15: Joshua Palmatier
10:45: Lori Perkins
12:30: Randee Dawn
1:45: Leslye Penelope
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ABOUT THE PRESENTERS
RANDEE DAWN: Brooklyn-based journalist and author Randee Dawn has written for many years about film, TV, music, internet trends, books, food and other lifestyle areas for outlets including The L.A. Times, Variety, Today.com and Mental Floss. She’s the co-author of The Law & Order: SVU Unofficial Companion, and contributed to Mental Floss’ The Curious Viewer and been an on-air contributing expert for NPR. Her first novel, the humorous pop culture fantasy Tune in Tomorrow, was finalist in the 2023 Next Generation Indie Awards, and her short stories have been published in numerous anthologies. She’s also the co-editor of Across the Universe: Stories of Alternative Beatles. You can find out more at RandeeDawn.com.
JOSHUA PALMATIER is a fantasy author with a PhD in mathematics. He currently teaches at SUNY Oneonta in upstate New York while writing in his “spare” time, editing anthologies, and running the anthology-producing small press Zombies Need Brains LLC. His most recent fantasy novel, Reaping the Aurora, concludes the fantasy series begun in Shattering the Ley and Threading the Needle, although you can also find his “Throne of Amenkor” series and the “Well of Sorrows” series still on the shelves. He is currently hard at work writing his next trilogy called the “Crystal Cities” (to be released in Summer 2024) and designing the Kickstarter for the next Zombies Need Brains anthology projects. You can find out more at http://www.joshuapalmatier.com.
LESLYE PENELOPE: Leslye Penelope is the award-winning author of the Earthsinger Chronicles. The first book in the series, Song of Blood & Stone, was chosen as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time. Equally left and right-brained, she studied filmmaking and computer science at Howard University and sometimes dreams in HTML. She hosts the My Imaginary Friends podcast, co-hosts the Ink & Magic podcast, and lives in Maryland with her feline dependents. Visit her online at: http://www.lpenelope.com and join her newsletter for writers at https://myimaginaryfriends.net.
LORI PERKINS is an award-winning feminist and erotica expert who has spent three decades working and teaching in the publishing industry, with over 35 years as a literary agent. She is currently the Publisher of Riverdale Avenue Books, and was a founding partner and Editorial Director of Ravenous Romance. She is also a published author of both fiction and nonfiction, and has been an adjunct professor at NYU’s Center for Publishing and NYU’s undergraduate journalism program. Perkins’ anthology, MeToo: Essays About How and Why This Happened and How It Will Never Happen Again received the 2018 Bronze Independent Publisher’s Award (IPPY) in Women’s’ Issues and has been course adopted.She has edited 25 erotica anthologies, including Hungry For Your Love, the first Zombie Romance anthology, which was published by St. Martin’s Press. She is also the publisher and founder of RomanceDailyNews.com, a daily online romance magazine started in 2018 to replace Romantic Times. Her web page is https://lperkinsagency.com/
MICHAEL A. VENTRELLA is a Stroudsburg writer with five novels so far, including Big Stick and Bloodsuckers: A Vampire Runs for President. He’s edited a dozen anthologies, including the Baker Street Irregulars anthologies (co-edited with New York Times Bestselling author Jonathan Maberry); Three Time Travelers Walk Into…, and Release the Virgins. His short stories have appeared in other anthologies and magazines. He’s also written nonfiction books about the US Constitution, The Beatles, and the Monkees. At his web page (MichaelAVentrella.com), he interviews authors and editors and gives advice for the starting writer. In his spare time, he is a lawyer.
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The members of The Pocono Liars are committed to making this conference one where every person in attendance feels supported and respected for their endeavors, and a place where all writers feel welcome and are treated with courtesy, patience and respect. While we as individuals might not share the same world views, we in The Pocono Liars believe it is imperative to develop a safe environment for creatives from all backgrounds and beliefs to gather in support of one another. It is our collective wish to provide such a venue in support of the intellectual integrity of all those who attend and wish to participate.
Additionally, as writers, we feel it is especially important that we respect the boundaries of each individual. Therefore, while proactive critiques are most certainly welcome and appreciated, we especially request that those in attendance refrain from putting fellow writers in a position of validating their choice of genre, lifestyle or story. Thank you.
We all know about the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: Death, War, Famine, and Pestilence riding on pale horses and all that Book-of-Revelation stuff. But why does it have to be four guys on horses? Why not the Four Cheerleaders of the Apocalypse? The Four Cats of the Apocalypse? The Four PTA Moms of the Apocalypse? The Four Lawyers, Librarians, or Lunch Ladies of the Apocalypse? The Four Drummers, Rock Stars, or Opera Singers of the Apocalypse? Or even the Four Squirrels of the Apocalypse or the Four Emojis of the Apocalypse?
Local attorney and Pocono Liars Club founder Michael A. Ventrella has a story in this new anthology: “Horseman, Horseman, Horseman & Horseman, Attorneys at Law.”
The anthology features many best-selling and award-winning authors, including David Gerrold, Jonathan Maberry, Peter David, Michael Jan Friedman, Jody Lynn Nye, David Mack, and Keith DeCandido.
After Tobias Brandt dies suddenly, his eldest son, with the support of his siblings, writes an obituary and has it published in the local newspaper. But instead of celebrating their father’s accomplishments and honoring his memory, it’s a scathing, contemptuous, and revealing account of the legacy of damage he caused.
Absent of closure, Tobias’s death ignites an unforeseeable sequence of events that his surviving children are forced to unravel, one perilous upset after the next.
ASHES is Book 1 in Sahar Abdulaziz’s series Evil Never Dies—a suspenseful page-turner about a dysfunctional collection of people navigating the complexities of grief, hypocrisy, and power.
DUST (Book 2) finds Sydney Hanes with her past problem (literally) dead and buried, a “new” family she could only dream of having, and an exciting life-affirming career change. She finally feels like she belongs. That was until a State Senator is found dead under suspicious circumstances. The widow reaches out to a mutual friend, imploring him to convince Sydney to help in the way that only Sydney can. However, unbeknownst to Sydney, a not-bargained-for, underhanded change of plan is in the work.
But before she can put two and two together, she is arrested and charged with extortion—unaware that someone dangerously powerful is behind the scenes, plotting to turn the blackmail charge into murder.
Both are available at all your favorite bookstores and through Amazon.
Pocono Liar and suspense writer Sahar Abdulaziz specializes in writing psychological thrillers, suspenseful narratives, thought-provoking social commentary, and clever satire. https://www.saharraziz.com
We had a great time at the Liars Club annual workshop, back after a few years gone (due to COVID). Special thanks goes to all the presenters: Sahar Abdulaziz, Kelly Jensen, Victoria Marie Lees, Susan Moore Jordan, Mary Ann Moore, and Michael A. Ventrella. It was well attended and we’ve received nice compliments and reviews.
Thank you to all participants and to members of the Liars Club for helping to make it happen. (Click on a picture to enlarge)
